LAKE OSWEGO — Hermiston won a battle of top-ranked teams in their respective classification, knocking off North Medford 54-41 in the opener of the 24th annual Nike Interstate Shootout Saturday at Lake Oswego High School.

Hermiston, ranked 10th in Class 5A, overcame the 10th ranked Class 6A squad.

It was a seesaw battle early with three first quarter deadlocks, but Jansen Edmiston, who scored eight straight Bulldog points toward the end of the first quarter. Edmiston fired in a three-pointer, a steal and a jump that helped give Hermiston a 19-10 cushion with 2:57 left in the first.

“We just want to keep our win streak going,” said Edmiston, who made four three-pointers. “We just feed off of our defense and we try to get a lot of transition baskets. The three’s were falling for us tonight and we had lots of fun.”

North Medford then came back with a 12-4 rally to tie it at 26-26 with 3:37 left in the second quarter, but Hermiston got to halftime with a 31-26 lead.

Hermiston’s momentum continued in the second half as Sara Ramirez and Kynzee Padilla fired in back-to-back three’s for a 37-26 advantage.

The Bulldogs perimeter shooting was spectacular throughout the game. Hermiston shot 47 percent (10-for-21) from three-point land.

Fueled by multiple three-pointers, Hermiston held onto a double digit advantag for most of the second half.

“We have lots of girls who can shoot the ball really well and they’re confidence level is high right now, because they shot very well tonight,” said coach Steve Hoffert, whose Bulldogs finished third in the Class 5A state tournament last season. “Hopefully, we’ll continue to have two or three girls that will continue hitting those long perimeter shots in our next game too.”

It was the sixth straight win for Hermiston, which moves onto the quarterfinals of the 16-team event and plays Iolani of Honolulu, Hawaii Sunday at 8 p.m. Iolani won 63-28 over Wilson in it’s opening round game of the four-day tournament that concludes Dec. 30 with the championship. Hermiston has advanced to the finals of the 16-team event the last two years.

　

Hermiston 54, North Medford 41

Hermiston 22 9 13 8 – 52

North Medford 14 12 7 6 – 41

Hermiston (52) – Sara Ramirez 18, Jansen Edmiston 17, Sydney Moore 2,

Abi Drotzmann 4, Kynzee Padilla 5, Tavin Headings 5.

North Medford (41) – S. Bumgardner 19, Lexi Hall 9, Maggie Freeman 7, Karley Covington 2, Jo Ross 2, Kathleen Martin 2.